Lipstick goodness

I finally got this (Fender American Special Strat) done a few days ago - sent it to Beez to have two things done.

Firstly, to get these replaced. Dead CTS tone pots. They were fine the last time I played this guitar. No amount of contact spray treatment could cure something as dead as this. Trashed & replaced.

Secondly, to get these Seymour Duncan SLS lipstick tube pickups fixed. You can't get any from the shops here, bought them online. The reason why I have not tried this kind of pickups after years of playing is simply because they are not available here. No big deal because these days, acquisition is simply a click away. Waited for more than a month for them to be shipped over because they were on back order; I did not see the availability status on purchase day. Anyway, I was more driven by the 25% discount. More on these on another day, suffice to say that they are beyond expectations.

A fresh set of strings to cap it all off. La Bella Super Bender set for, you guessed it, some very bendable moments & they mean what they said - very bend friendly. Will not appeal to the metal heads who thrive on peddling bass notes; the feel is just different. That's right, got this online as well.